Impact Moments

Everyday, as part of our own team’s assessment and debrief of the day, we’ve discussed our own personal impact moment from the day. Most days it’s very difficult to identify just ONE impact moments, but there’s usually something that stands out with each of us.

The list is long and endless: from tender moments with the children, touching stories on home visits, emotions of seeing community members accept Jesus as their savior, to more practical things. As team leader and being here for the second time, it’s very refreshing to hear our teams’ perspectives on so many things.

For me, being immersed in one of the school rooms most afternoons sewing with the women, I am continuously struck by the sense of community these women have. Day 1 of sewing involved me meeting with the women and Molex, and explaining the two sewing machines purchased and the project we wanted to work with them on: a reusable menstrual pad system. Immediately, with both groups of women brought in, there was such gratitude to Northgate for ‘remembering our conversation under the trees last year’ when we discussed those very issues: a desire to learn how to sew, and a need for hygienic resources during their monthly bleeds.

The second thing that struck me was their uncertainty: they REALLY wanted our help as they had never CUT with scissors before, never mind the sewing process.

On Day 1 that’s where we started: learning out to cut. You can’t imagine the joy on their faces when they ‘got it’. That’s when the “magic” (in my eyes, as we don’t work this way) started to happen. They literally took over our teaching. These beautiful women did not want to just learn it for themselves; they wanted their friends to master the skill as well.

The same can be said for the sewing lessons. We had a group of about 15 women, and just 2 sewing machines. Imagine the impatience. But, there was none. I specifically asked if any of the village women had any sewing experience. Thankfully, one did. A lady named Betty. As the days go on, we are depending on her quiet and patient teaching to help the women.


These are treadle machines, operated with manual labor (pumping a foot pedal): something I never used as we are an electricity run world in Canada today. But, Marian grew up on one. I couldn’t quite get it, and we didn’t have the time for me to learn. She worked with Betty, and once Betty was competent (which took only minutes) both Marian and Betty worked at helping the others learn.

We saw the same thing happen. Betty and Marian were both patient teachers, and some students would take a good 45 minutes just to figure out the foot pedal. But, once they got it, the whole room would break out in cheers and immediately they would want to show their friends how.

An amazing process.

Every day we come to the school room, and Molex tells us ‘the women have told their friends and showed them what they have made, there are now more women that want to learn’. Just yesterday, we had a 14 year old girl come in and ask if she could learn how. Three times we have run out of supplies...the amount of women coming has completed surpassed all expectations.

We are no longer teaching…we are facilitating at this point. The women are teaching the women.

One day 1 we wondered, will they get this? One of the workers from FH, David, worked along side us and the women over the past 5 days, and he said “in one week they will be professionals”. We now have at least 4 village women that can confidently teach the others.

The Marare school motto is “never give up”. This is also the community’s motto. We’ve seen it time and time again. Today, I learned that David was right, and confidently told Moses that our job teaching the women to sew is done.

So, when I get home, I’m organizing a group of 20 women who have never sewn.